Bastei Lübbe AG: Investment in new media production company HPR Bild & Ton GmbH

Bastei Lübbe AG has announced that the company has purchased a 25 per cent share in the newly founded media production company HPR Bild & Ton GmbH, Cologne. Together with HPR Künstler & Medien GmbH from Cologne, which holds 75 per cent, the new company will be used to develop stage and author formats, event shows and fictional formats. 'By taking this step we will be opening up our authors to new production and marketing methods,' explains Programme Board member Felix Rudloff.

HPR owner and managing director Jürgen Hepp, whose agency HPR has been successfully representing well-known stars and stage artists such as Ralf Schmitz, Johann König, Bastian Pastewka, Hugo Egon Balder, Simon Gosejohann, Michael Kessler, Jenke von Wilmsdorff, Bill Mockridge or Mundstuhl for many years, is looking forward to the new setup: 'We are creating a new range of services not only for our own artists, but also for other artists, so that together we can develop innovative formats tailored to the artist. The creative potential of both companies is a perfect addition to this.'

HPR Bild & Ton GmbH will be using its exclusive production partner, production company Eyeworks Germany GmbH, which produces a variety of successful formats for all of the leading German broadcasters from all genres, such as TV and cinema films for the national and international markets. HPR Bild & Ton GmbH will therefore have three strong partners, each an expert in their respective field.

This new investment marks a further step by Bastei Lübbe AG on its path to achieving a 360 approach, which will form the basis for a multimedia publishing house across all stages of the production chain and beyond. Thomas Schierack, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bastei Lübbe AG: 'We are always interested in offering our authors the best possible opportunities. Until now, we were able to directly realise books, audio books, e-books, apps and digital series. But with the new company, we can go an important step further towards new formats.'

Bastei Lübbe publisher Stefan Lübbe: 'When I made the 360 approach one of my company's objectives a few years ago, it was these exact same developments that I had in mind: to utilise our own create potential and to enter into a strong new commitment alongside partners that were equally as create.'

Contact Bastei Lübbe AG:
Barbara Fischer
Head of Media and
Event Marketing
Tel.: +49 (0)221 / 82 00 28 50
Email: barbara.fischer@luebbe.de